An 85-year-old man identified as Israel Zamora lives alone, without family, and in extremely precarious conditions in a small house under construction that a neighbor lent him to have a roof over his head while he sleeps, according to reported by the community group El Trinitario de a Pie in a video posted on Facebook.
Don Israel was born in Yaguajay and grew up in Cielo de Alga. According to his own testimony in the video, he has no children or family members who can support him, placing him in an extremely vulnerable situation.
To survive, the old man gathers sticks and crafts them by hand to make brooms and doors that he sells or trades. When asked if this is enough for him to get by, he simply replies, "More or less."
His only formal source of income is a retirement pension of 4,000 Cuban pesos per month, the minimum approved by the Cuban regime in July 2025. That amount is equivalent to less than 10 dollars at the informal exchange rate, while a basic food basket requires approximately 30,000 pesos per month.
The images shared alongside the video reveal the interior of the home in alarming conditions: rooms blackened by soot, with dirt floors and debris. The exterior features unfinished cement block walls and a damaged metal sheet roof.
"We want to raise awareness about the situation of Mr. Israel Zamora, an 85-year-old grandfather who lives alone in a small house under construction that a neighbor lent him, so that he at least has a roof over his head," the group wrote in their post.
El Trinitario de a Pie announced that it would concentrate its efforts this week to help him, identifying food as his most urgent need. "We want to see if we can help him a little. At least with food, which is what he needs the most," one of its members noted in the video.
The case of Israel Zamora is not an exception. According to the Cuban Observatory of Human Rights, 79% of people over 70 years old in Cuba cannot have the three main meals of the day, and 99% of retirees claim that their pension does not cover basic needs for food, housing, and medicine.
A report released in February 2025 denounced that 89% of the Cuban population lives in extreme poverty, and seven out of ten people have to deprive themselves of at least one meal a day.
The massive emigration of young people has exacerbated the neglect of elderly people in Cuba, leaving thousands of seniors alone, some of whom die in their homes without anyone noticing for days.
Community groups like El Trinitario de a Pie have emerged as informal support networks in response to the state's withdrawal from its social assistance functions, documenting and sharing cases of vulnerability on social media to mobilize citizen aid. The message concludes by appealing to citizen solidarity: "Every bit of help, outreach, or support makes a difference. Thank you for not being indifferent."
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